ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pitch · temple · chest · stick · cold · tear · bore · clip

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. cold — an illness
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. clip — a video
  8. chest — a box
  9. chest — of your body
  10. pitch — completely
  11. tear — from crying
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. clip — to cut
  14. tear — to rip
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. bore — to drill
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. clip — for paper
  19. cold — not warm
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. chest — of your body
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. tear — from crying
  24. bore — to tire

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com